The wild manoeuvres in Sydney Harbour made for a dramatic start to what promises to be a thrilling edition of the bluewater classic, after a final weather briefing predicted thunderstorms, 3½ metre waves, wind changes, and reduced visibility for the 628-nautical-mile race south.
A predicted trough set to strike the fastest yachts in the fleet by early Friday morning will bring strong-to-gale-force southwesterly winds upon the approach to the Bass Strait.
“We are seeing strong wind warnings developing through the afternoon today and getting up to gale [force], so about 35 knots on the south coast of NSW, and further south towards Tasmania,” said Gabrielle Woodhouse, senior meteorologist for the NSW Bureau of Meteorology.
LawConnect and Master Lock Comanche in lockstep on the Sydney to Hobart.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
“It’s going to be fairly strong. It’s going to be very abrupt. There may be some gale winds associated with that change.
“By this afternoon [the BOM has predicted] winds speeds of 20 to 30 knots, and by the evening, what we can see, particularly south of about Narooma, is those wind speeds getting up to 35 knots.”
Woodhouse also warned that winds could become unpredictable along the east coast of Tasmania, with certain sections of the route slowing considerably, while others may have gale-force winds.
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“We could end up seeing some of the winds become much lighter … it’s a really tricky forecast for that eastern part of the Tasmanian coast.”
Master Lock Comanche co-skipper Matt Allen said the action would be “fast and furious” on Thursday night.
“The boat speeds are going to be through the roof,” Allen said. “I think we’ll be doing 30 to 40 knots through the water. It’s going to be a really tough night before we get into that front, which … will be quite good for the bigger boats. The rich will get, probably, richer through the course of tomorrow”
The key competitors for line honours are LawConnect, Wild Thing 100, and Master Lock Comanche.
James Mayo, co-skipper of Comanche, said that while crew safety and vessel maintenance were his top priorities, he had “one goal – I want to lock this up.”
“It’s going to be wild, and it’s going to be windy,” he added. “It’s about keeping this asset in one piece, and transitioning through that as best we can.”
At his pre-race press conference, Wild Thing 100’s skipper Grant Wharington had stressed his priority was to make it out of the harbour in one piece before consolidating its position, keeping in touch with the leaders and hoping for some luck.
“It’s all about tonight,” Wharington had said. “Keeping the boat together, keeping it going fast. Changing gears efficiently and just keeping in contact with the other guys. We’re not looking for any kind of magic. There are some excellent sailors out here, best in the world. So we’ve just got to stay in the same patch of water, and just do the best with our boat that we can.”
with Reuters
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